Big, big thanks to my recent Body and Soul interviewee Louis Mofsie (Hopi/Winnebago) and his Thunderbird American Indian Dancers community for their beautiful, profoundly moving performance at Theater for the New City.
The geographical/cultural range of dances is impressive, from the tender Caribou Dance of Alaska to the virtuousic Plains region hoop dance--with its mindboggling, intricate footwork and hoop-handling--danced to perfection by Donna Ahmadi (Gullah/Cherokee/Chickasaw) and Michael Taylor (Choctaw/French). New York dance fans will recognize Ahmadi from her performances in works by Stephan Koplowitz and Alison Chase as well as Tom Pearson and Zach Morris of Third Rail Projects. Pearson (Coharie/Muskogee/Cherokee) also lends his spirited, focused performing to the current TAID show. You'll also enjoy superb storytellers: the soulful Matoaka Little Eagle (Santo Domingo/Chickahominy) and Muriel Miguel (Kuna/Rappahannock), beloved of fans of New York's Spiderwoman Theater, who brings color, rhythm, suspense and humor to tales that deliver a sly punch.
The concert runs through next Sunday, February 17, and you owe yourself this hearty feast. Click here for schedule information and ticketing.
For information on other TAID events, call 201-587-9633.